In a continuing effort to improve the quality of shipping fruits, I, the inventor, typically hybridize a large number of peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, and cherry seedlings each year. I also grow a smaller number of open pollinated seeds of each of these fruits, usually to capture recessive traits. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which has been denominated varietally as ‘Pearlicious XXIII’.
In 2005 I made a first generation hybridization using ‘Grand Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,960) nectarine as the selected seed parent and ‘53P129’ (unpatented) nectarine as the selected pollen parent. The fruit of this cross was gathered in the summer of 2005, and the seeds were removed from the fruit, germinated, stratified, and grown as seedlings on their own root in my greenhouse. Upon reaching dormancy that winter, the seedlings were transplanted as a group to a cultivated area of my experimental orchard located near Le Grand, Calif., in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). During the fruit evaluation season of 2009 I selected the present variety as a single tree from the group of seedlings described above. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of nectarine tree, I asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original plant in all respects. The reproduction of the variety included the use of ‘Nemaguard’ (unpatented) rootstock upon which the present variety was compatible and true to type.
The present variety is similar to its pollen parent, ‘53P129’ by producing nectarines that are mostly red in skin color, but is quite distinguished therefrom by producing fruit that is white instead of yellow in flesh color, that is much less acidic in flavor, and that matures about ten days later.
The present variety is similar to its seed parent, ‘Grand Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,960) nectarine by being self-fertile and by producing white flesh clingstone nectarines that are firm, sweet, and full red skin color, but is quite distinguished therefrom by maturing about forty days earlier.
The present variety is most similar to ‘Pearlicious II’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 22,579) nectarine by blooming somewhat early, by being self-fertile, and by producing white flesh nectarines that have a bitter kernel and that are firm, sweet, and nearly full red in skin color, but is distinguished therefrom by having reniform instead of globose leaf glands and by producing fruit that is clingstone rather than freestone, that is somewhat smaller in size, and that matures about four days earlier.